A 44-year-old man fell off the roof of an apartment building and died on a Wednesday morning late last month. The deceased construction worker was helping to complete an apartment building that was under construction in the Great Falls historic district of Patterson, New Jersey.

The $4 million construction project, known as Park Corners, is intended to offer a more inviting gateway into the city’s national park. The roof of the building, where the man fell from, is said to be approximately 40 feet high.

The victim, who hails from New York City, was in the process of installing vibration mats that were part of the new apartment building’s air-conditioning and heating systems. He was working on a flat roof area when the accident occurred.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is conducting an investigation of the worksite where the accident happened. At this time, investigators have not released any information about what may have caused the accident. Contractors for the building project have been instructed to complete an independent safety assessment to prevent anything like this from happening again.

When a fatal construction accident happens, the incident will always send shock waves of grief, sadness and regret throughout the community. In this, those who worked with the construction worker who died, will no doubt have numerous questions about what they could have done to prevent this tragedy from happening. At the very least, following a tragic construction-related death, family members of the victim may be able to seek workers’ compensation death benefits to help them through this extremely difficult time.

Source: northjersey.com, “Construction worker dies after fall from Paterson roof,” Joe Malinconico, Nov. 23, 2016